The castle of Sales, the first Thorens residence of the de Sales family, was situated about 200 metres above the castle of Thorens. It was in this residence that Saint François de Sales was born on August 21, 1567. Barely 63 years later, Sales was destroyed during the French occupation of the Duchy of Savoy.
In the spring of 1630, the King of France, Louis XIII, ordered his troops to invade the Duchy of Savoy. When they arrived under the ramparts of Annecy, the royal army, commanded by Gaspard III de Coligny (1584-1646), marshal of Châtillon, met resistance from Baron Louis de Sales (1577-1654), captain-governor of Annecy, at the head of his garrison. Thus, from 23rd to 25th May 1630, Baron de Sales, younger brother of Saint Francis, undertook to resist the royal ostentation. However, the Annecy garrison was not a match for the army of the King of France. Louis capitulated on the third day, surrendering with the honours of war.
Thanks to this surrender, Baron de Sales was able both to avoid a bloody outcome to the siege of Annecy and to spare the lives of its inhabitants. Nevertheless, the reaction of Louis XIII and Richelieu was not long in coming: in order to wash away what they considered to be an affront, but which was none other than the bravery of Louis de Sales, the Marshal of Châtillon was ordered to go to Thorens to dismantle the Château de Sales. There is no mention of any reprisals against the person of the baron. On the other hand, out of gratitude to Louis de Sales who knew how to preserve the life of the Annecians, and as compensation for the destruction of the Château de Sales, the Duke of Savoy, Victor-Amédée I, raised the Baron de Sales to the title of Count (1632). Louis de Sales and his family then settled in the château de Thorens.
It is in this same château de Thorens, acquired by Saint François de Sales on behalf of his family in 1602, that the descendants of Louis (the de Roussy de Sales family) still live today. In 1672, three of Louis de Sales' sons built a chapel on the ruins of the Château de Sales, precisely on the site of the birthplace of their uncle Saint François. This chapel was restored by Count François de Roussy de Sales (1860-1943). He had a vault added in which were deposited the ashes of his ancestors, who were once buried in the parish church of Thorens (chapel of Saint Sébastien). The de Sales chapel has been the necropolis of the de Roussy de Sales family ever since.
The last Count of Thorens, Jean-François de Roussy de Sales (1928-1999), grandson of Count François, now rests in this chapel with his ancestors. The site has been listed since 1982. The decoration of the chapel consists mainly of a baroque altarpiece dated 1677, awkwardly restored in the 19th century. In the chapel of the former castle of Sales Saint Francis received from God the inspiration to create the Order of the Visitation. The 19th century stone cross in front of the present chapel of Sales indicates this precise place.
